This article points to the tendency of New Zealand newspapers to report cases of domestic violence and child abuse involving Māori families. It argues that they place undue emphasis on a predetermined set of notions about Māori people and their behaviour, thereby preserving simplistic racial divisions and contributing to public perceptions of child abuse as a 'Māori problem'. The author uses a case study of a child named Hine who died as a result of familial abuse to illustrate how the media drew parallels of the family's situation with the film "Once Were Warriors".

Social Work Review 12(4) 2000 : 5-8